When starting to build a website, you have to keep a lot in mind. Between writing content and choosing the perfect visuals, some fundamental elements may fall by the wayside. But make sure you don’t overlook one important thing: your website fonts, also known as typography.
Typography is defined as the visual representation of type. In other words, it’s the fonts you use to communicate your content and brand voice. In some cases, it can communicate more about your brand than words alone. Your selected fonts should amplify your brand voice, your graphic design and web design (or web redesign), while looking sharp on the screen and easily conveying information.
In this guide, we’ll discuss twenty of the best website fonts, as well as tips for choosing the right ones for you when you’re learning how to make a website.
The primary types of website fonts
The art of typography is rich and complex—ranging from aesthetics to text alignment and spacing. Before we dive into our 20 favorites, it’s important to understand the three main types of fonts: serif, sans serif and script. This will help you better understand each and narrow down which best fonts will suit your overall website design.
Here’s a quick summary:
Serif fonts
A serif is a small line at the end of a stroke in a letter or symbol. Many consider serif fonts as classical and elegant, and they are mostly associated with print publishing. Examples include Times New Roman, Georgia and Bodoni.
Sans serif fonts
These fonts don’t contain serif lines at the end of their letters. Sans serifs are clean, modern and often neutral-looking, making them a great fit for web design. Examples include Wix’s own Madefor font, Helvetica and the infamous Comic Sans.
Script fonts
Scripts, including cursive fonts, are modeled after handwriting styles. Keep this style limited to titles only, as visitors may find it hard to read body text in a script font. Examples include Lobster and Lucida Handwriting fonts.
20 of the best website fonts
These 20 fonts are ideal for website design since they are easy-to-read (see easiest to read fonts) and can fit a variety of website types. Several of them come in font families, meaning each font has multiple versions that you can use throughout your website copy.
01. CoFo Sans
Designed by: Maria Doreuli
This sans serif font appears sleek and modern with Cyrillic undertones. It’s simple and easy-to-read.
Download CoFo Sans via Contrast Foundry.
02. Lato
Designed by: Łukasz Dziedzic
A sans serif font equally suited for both titles and body text, its rounded, classic proportions create a sense of harmony and warmth.
Download Lato via Google Fonts.
03. Abolition
Designed by: Mattox Shuler
Abolition offers a strong, easy-to-read sans serif font. Composed of only capital letters, this attention-grabbing font makes a bold statement.
Download Abolition via Adobe Fonts.
04. Forum
Designed by: Denis Masharov
This serif font works especially well for titles and headlines, making it a good choice for your website’s primary font. Its Roman proportions give it a vintage feel.
Download Forum via Google Fonts.
05. Sofia Pro
Designed by: Olivier Gourvat
One of MyFonts’ best-selling fonts, Sofia Pro is a sans serif typeface with a modern look and geometric lines. Designed specifically to be readable even in very small sizes, it’s perfect for web accessibility, usability, business cards and mobile screens.
Download Sofia Pro via MyFonts.
06. Graphik
Designed by: Christian Schwartz
With over 18 styles to choose from, Graphik boasts clean, elegant lines and a variety of letter widths. It suits not only for web design, but also marketing assets such as newsletters, logos and advertisements.
Download Graphik via Commercial.
07. BD Supper
Designed by: Lopetz
Offering whimsical vibes, BD Supper has a modern, cartoonish and childlike feel, while still appearing clean and bold.
Download BD Summer via Adobe Fonts.
08. Palatino
Designed by: Hermann Zapf
Palatino is an old-school serif font that is versatile and easy on the eyes. This typeface has structured, professional undertones and makes a strong, powerful statement.
Download Palatino via MyFonts.
09. Barlow
Designed by: Jeremy Tribby
The Barlow sans serif font is clean and low-contrast, making it effortlessly readable. The typeface designer looked to California license plates and highway signs for inspiration.
Download Barlow via Google Fonts.
10. Publico
Designed by: Christian Schwartz and Paul Barnes
This serif font has an old-school newspaper look that still works well for modern design. With several text families to choose from, the font is sharp and expressive with contrast between thick and thinner lines.
Download Publico via Commercial.
11. FS Me
Designed by: Fontsmith
This sans serif font was specifically designed to enhance readability for people with learning disabilities. Larger dots on the “i”s, extended ascenders and longer tails are just a few of the unique characteristics that make this font ideal for enhancing web accessibility.
Download FS Me via Fontsmith.
12. Magnific Caos
Designed by: Billy Argel
This classic gothic serif font includes decorative ligatures on capital letters. It’s dark and bold, with hints of white in each letter to slightly brighten up the forefront and add depth.
Download Magnific Caos via Fontspace.
13. Diastema
Designed by: Issam Boufelja
Diastema has a modern, whimsical design that uses long and sometimes joining ligatures. It has a fancy, classy feel that pairs well with clean, modern imagery.
Download Diastema via MyFonts.
14. Caponi
Designed by: Miguel Reyes, Christian Schwartz and Paul Barnes
Caponi is a versatile serif font with three families offering slightly different, yet complementary, presentations: Caponi Display has a modern look ideal for titles and headers; Caponi Slab is bolder and perfect for large text and quotes meant to stand out; and Caponi Text is a mellow interpretation that can be used for any text.
Download Caponi via Commercial.
15. Caudex
Designed by: Nidud
Caudex was originally designed for print in the late 90s, but it has since been adapted for the web. It puts a trendy and contemporary spin on letterforms seen in medieval manuscripts.
Download Caudex via Google Fonts.
16. Eleven Twenty
Designed by: Fenotype
With a futuristic vibe evoking old-school video games, this font fits sites related to science fiction or other forward-thinking ideas.
Download Eleven Twenty via Font Meme.
17. FS Ostro
Designed by: Monotype
This serif font provides grace and elegance. It’s mellow, charismatic design is easy to read and incredibly versatile.
Download FS Ostro via Fontsmith.
18. Ratio Modern
Designed by: Kevin King and Patrick Griffin
This serif font uses a combination of thin and thick lines to make up each letter, adding elegant undertones to an otherwise classic design.
Download Ratio Modern via Adobe Fonts.
19. Lil Grotesk
Designed by: Bastien Sozeau
Don’t let the name fool you—this sans serif font has a clean, block-like style with rounded edges outlining the letters. Indeed, Lil Grotesk has a pristine look that’s very easy to read.
Download Lil Grotesk via Font Meme.
20. Poppins
Designed by: the Indian Type Foundry
Poppins is a sans serif type family whose clean, minimalist aesthetic is based on geometric forms and perfect circles.
Download Poppins via Google Fonts.